When a woman is murdered in a small Florida town inhabited entirely by sex offenders, the BAU faces a community full of suspects. Also, Lewis receives a career opportunity that may take her away from the team.

The BAU travels to Wichita, Kansas, in search of an unsub who terrorizes parents by abducting their children while the entire family is asleep. Meanwhile, Morgan tries to find who was responsible for his attack.

The BAU searches for a serial killer who is intentionally disfiguring victims. Also, Rossi finds himself in an awkward reunion with his ex-wife, Hayden Montgomery, who kept his daughter, Joy, a secret from him for nearly 30 years.

The BAU is shocked when Hotch is apprehended by a SWAT team and suspected of conspiracy. As the team scrambles to prove his innocence, they suspect a larger plot is on the horizon.

Highlights

A.J. Cook, who was pregnant by the end of Season Ten, was not present for the first few episodes of the season, as she gave birth to her second child Phoenix around the time filming started. Phoenix began portraying Michael LaMontagne, JJ's second son.

Actress and comedian Aisha Tyler joined Criminal Minds at the start of the season. She portrays a recurring character, Doctor Tara Lewis, a forensic psychologist with a passion for the criminal justice system. Her previous experience in the FBI has brought her face-to-face with monsters, as her job was to extensively interview psychopathic criminals to determine whether they were fit for trial. Her dream was always to study psychopaths up close and personal, to try to learn how they can be caught and if there is any conscience behind their brutal crimes. Needless to say, after being pressured by the shortened team as a result of the absences of Kate and, temporarily, JJ, Hotch selects Lewis to join the BAU in the premiere, in which they search for a serial killer who is out for revenge. Her function in the team will be to examine the psyche of unsubs once they are apprehended.

A story arc revolved around a darknet organization called Silk Road (based entirely on its real-life counterpart, which was recently shut down by the FBI) being brought down by the BAU and other FBI agencies. Afterwards, the team is forced to focus on capturing individual members who managed to get away. Meanwhile, a new organization begins to form in the original's place, later revealed to be a network of hitmen.